00:00On the floor of the German Parliament, Chancellor Olaf Scholz faced a confident vote which he had called.
00:08After the collapse of his three-party coalition, a majority of MPs voted to call time on his government,
00:16thrusting the world's third largest economy into snap elections.
00:20Scholz remained defiant in his desire to seek a second term.
00:26We must do something to ensure that jobs are secured,
00:30that new jobs are created, that new economic growth is possible
00:34and that we overcome the challenges facing our economy in the future
00:38so we remain a successful, strong, industrialised country.
00:42But polls show he faces an uphill battle.
00:46His Social Democrat party has consistently sat third in the polls.
00:51Conservative leader Friedrich Merz goes into the election the firm favourite.
00:56Polls indicating his party currently ahead of Scholz's by roughly 15 points.
01:01Scholz lost the trust of the majority of the population long ago.
01:07He's also lost the trust of investors who have been leaving Germany for several years now.
01:12There's also been a significant outflow of capital in Germany.
01:17The country is losing its competitiveness
01:19and that is why we're countering this failed federal government with our own election programme.
01:26But no party is expected to attract more than 50% of the vote.
01:31Coalitions and deal-making very much in the DNA of German politics.
01:36And just like the last government, the Green Party could prove critical in piecing together a coalition.
01:46Our electoral programme draws its strength and power from its ability to tackle the problems of our time,
01:51the major problems of our time.
01:53And here, it must be said clearly, Germany must once again reinvent itself.
01:58But the great unknown of this election is the role the far-right AFD could play.
02:06While many parties have ruled out working with them, they have consistently sat second in the polls.
02:12A spate of terror attacks thrusting their core message of cracking down on illegal immigration
02:18right at the centre of national debate.
02:25I will repeat it once more.
02:27We want something to finally change in our country and for us to finally be able to live in safety again.
02:33We never want to grieve with a mother who has lost her son in such a senseless and brutal way ever again.
02:41It's been noted here that these snap elections have been called at a time when Germany finds itself
02:47right in the middle of several foreign policy challenges.
02:50From the conflict in Ukraine, to fears over a global trade war,
02:55to an unpredictable president back in the White House.
02:59Whoever is victorious in February will likely face a very busy entree when it comes to foreign affairs.
03:08Surveys show the top issues for voters likely to dominate the campaign include immigration,
03:14a lagging economy and climate change.
03:17As Europe's biggest economy, the decision of Germany's voters matters to the broader continent,
03:23with results likely to reverberate across to Brussels and beyond.
03:28Trent Murray, CGTN, Berlin.
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